Blissfield girls basketball cruises past Summerfield

The Blissfield High School girls basketball team defeated Summerfield 54-29 on Friday night.

The story of the game was Blissfield's (2-0) stifling defense. After allowing 11 points in the first quarter, the Royals shut down the Summerfield offense and didn't allow the Bulldogs to score more than seven points a quarter.

"We looked sluggish to start the game," said Blissfield coach Ryan Gilbert. "I think we saw that Summerfield had lost twice and thought we had an easy game. Once we woke up, we shut them down defensively, especially in the second half."

Blissfield dug itself an early hole as the Bulldogs took a 13-6 lead. Then the Royals went into a full-court press. The constant pressure by Blissfield's guards caused a multitude of turnovers for the Bulldogs, who often struggled to get the ball past half-court.

The sudden change of play let Blissfield control the game, methodically moving the ball around the perimeter of Summerfield's zone defense until they found an opening. No one benefitted from this more than Claire Denecker, who finished with 24 points, 15 rebounds, seven steals and two blocks on the night. Denecker's ability to post up down low and her rebounding abilities allowed the Royals to tie the game and eventually take a 26-18 lead into the half.

"We're glad to have her on our team," Gilbert joked about Denecker. "She's smart, tough and did a phenomenal job for us tonight. She's our floor leader."The second half was all Blissfield.

The Royal defense, which had slowed Summerfield in the first half, shut them down in the second. Summerfield only scored 11 points in the second half, with a majority of them coming from the foul line.

Summerfield often struggled to inbound the ball with Blissfield defenders all over them. The Bulldogs, flustered by the Royal defense, began to handle the ball poorly. Emma Essen took advantage of this, racking up four steals in the half in addition to her 10 points.

The only dim spot for the Royals was the foul line. Blissfield finished 11-for-26 as a team.

"Yeah, we shot poorly last game too," said Gilbert. "I'm thinking we might stop shooting them in practice. It's something we'll work on in the summer."

Up by 20 with around five minutes left, Gilbert pulled his starters and let some of the bench players get some experience. The Royals continued to play tough until the final whistle and earned the 54-29 win.

"I thought the team looked good tonight," said Denecker. "We came out slow but we got into it and our defense took over. Our guards played great and kept the pressure on while our post players covered any open spaces. We shot pretty well too."

Denecker blames her team's rough opening on nerves.

"We're a younger team with a few sophomores starting and we only have one senior," she said. "I think it will take them a couple of games to get used to it."

Kelsie Abbott finished with six points and seven rebounds for Blissfield, while Colleen Willson added five points for the Royals.

"It feels good to start the season 2-0," said Denecker. "We'll be looking for an LCAA title this season."

Blissfield JV: Marley Griffith scored 19 points to lead the Blissfield junior varsity squad to a 35-30 win over Summerfield.